Mosquitoes have the tiniest suckers, but they pack a pretty painful bite. However, mosquitoes are more than just a general nuisance. They can also carry and transfer serious diseases to humans, such as the dengue virus, malaria, Zika Virus, and West Nile Virus, which can have severe detrimental effects on human health and can sometimes even be fatal.
That said, it’s crucial that you have mosquito control measures in place if you live in an area with a high mosquito population. While the above-mentioned illnesses may not be endemic in your area, getting bitten over and over again can be extremely annoying.
Avoiding mosquitoes outside can be as easy as fumigating your backyard or slapping on a layer of mosquito repellent. But what do you do about the mosquitoesinsideyour home? Before we delve into the solutions, let’s find outhowmosquitoes get inside your house in the first place.
Openings
The most common way that mosquitoes gain entry into your home is through physical openings, such as doors, windows, holes in screens, and gaps around these entrances. Mosquitoes often seek shelter away from unfavorable conditions and see your house as a nice temporary home. However, they may not find their way back outside and hence get trapped inside, leading them to use you and your family as a walking buffet.
Pets
Mosquitoes can also get inside your home through your pet. If your pet goes outside and gets bitten by a mosquito, they can bring that mosquito back inside with them when they walk in. If you’re unlucky enough, that mosquito can lay eggs inside your home, particularly in a potted plant or some kind of water source.
Indoor plants
Mosquitoes are attracted to plants, primarily those with nectar. Plants are ideal sources of food for them, and thus can entice mosquitoes from the outside to find a way into the home. If you have indoor plants, see if there are mosquitoes buzzing around them. If there are, you likely have to find possible entry points and seal them to prevent more mosquitoes from coming inside.
Water sources
Similar to plants, standing water can also attract mosquitoes inside your home. This could be a bucket of water that you’ve placed under a leak, a decorative waterfall, or saucers on plant pots that have accumulated water over time. If you want to find out if there are mosquitoes in a particular vessel of standing water, give it a little tap and you can see the larvae heading down to the bottom.
How to eliminate mosquitoes inside your home
1. Get rid of openings.First and foremost, block all possible entry points that mosquitoes and other tiny pests can get through. If you haven’t done so yet, install screens on your windows and doors to prevent mosquitoes from getting through.
2. Limit your indoor plants.If you have a jungle inside your home, chances are, you’re going to attract a horde of mosquitoes. And even if you have physical barriers in place, mosquitoes are so tiny that they can slip through even the smallest crack between your windows and doors.
3. Eliminate standing water.Undisturbed water serves as a great breeding spot for mosquitoes. That said, get rid of any source of standing water inside your home, be it a bucket, plant pot, or plant saucer. Better yet, get rid of standing water outside of your home as well, including birdbaths, tires, and anywhere that rain can accumulate.
4. Cover your pool.If you are not using your pool frequently, be sure to cover it at all times. A pool that goes mostly undisturbed can host millions of mosquitoes, which can eventually end up inside your home and wreak havoc there. If you don’t plan to use your pool for a very long time, it may be better to drain it entirely as mosquitoes can also travel to your neighbor’s yard.
5. Fumigate.If the mosquito problem inside or outside of your home gets too difficult to deal with, it may be time to call in a professional to fumigate your home. This type of treatment can kill off adult mosquitoes as well as any larvae that they may have left behind. Moreover, the fumes can reach into the deepest nooks and crannies of your home, which means that every little spot will receive a fumigation blast.
Few things are more annoying than a mosquito bite, especially there seem to be a million mosquitoes feasting on your blood. Now that you know how mosquitoes get into your house, however, you can better prevent their entry and keep your indoor space as mosquito-free as possible.
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